SC budget: send jailed illegal immigrants to feds

WISTV
February 15, 2011
COLUMBIA, SC

A budget-writing panel Tuesday agreed to send illegal immigrants in South Carolina prisons to federal authorities for deportation in order to save money.

The House subcommittee's measure takes illegal immigrants out of state prisons after they've completed at least a third of their sentence and sends them to Immigration and Customs Enforcement once a deportation order has been issued.

Those who returned to the state will have to serve the rest of their sentence without parole.

Federal Bureau of Prisons data shows the state had 574 illegal immigrants during the last fiscal year.

The panel also approved measures that would add an undetermined surcharge to inmate telephone calls to cover the costs of electronic gear needed to prevent inmates from using contraband cell phones to make calls.

Meanwhile, the panel approved plans to merge the state's Department of Probation and Parole into the state Corrections Department. That's an agenda item for Gov. Nikki Haley and legislators looking for ways to streamline government and possibly save money.

The full Ways and Means committee begins discussing the $5.2 billion spending plan next week, along temporary law changes including the immigration, cell phone and consolidation measures.

http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=14033949